“Definition of Enneagram: System of spiritual psychology based on an ancient Sufi [Islamic mysticism] typology of nine personality types or primary roles with the recognition of one’s type tantamount to a spiritual awakening” from Alternative Health Dictionary
Recently, Lighthouse Trails has received numerous inquiries from readers about the Enneagram because of it being used in their churches or by Christians with whom they are acquainted. Below, we are posting some various items we have on file regarding the Enneagram. We hope they provide enough information to cause any believer to stay away from the Enneagram (or to at least do further research before utilizing it). The first item is a letter to the editor we received a couple years ago that will help illustrate the problem.
Dear Lighthouse Trails:
I wanted to write and share with you yet another example of church leadership embracing New Age methods. Recently, an acquaintance on Facebook posted a link to an Enneagram chart happily reporting her number and encouraging others to contact her if they want to know more about the Enneagram. What concerned me the most is that this acquaintance is the wife of a pastor of a young, but rapidly growing church in our area. Though not familiar with the Enneagram, I knew it likely had mystic / New Age origins by its very description. It broke my heart that a pastor’s wife would encourage such a thing. A day after her post, and after researching it for myself, I reached out to her privately warning her of its roots. I encouraged this pastor’s wife that God’s Word is enough and then hoped for a gracious response.
Her response was quick and indeed gracious, but defended their use of the Enneagram by explaining how they have looked at several resources tying what the Enneagram reveals back to the Gospel and that they were using it much like the Myers-Briggs or other personality type system to learn more about each other in order to build one another up.
Sadly, that is how so many of these New Age ideas enter even the conservative church. Someone somewhere at some point put a Christian spin on such an idea, wraps it up in attractive packaging, and tags it “christian.” And the young, hip, “relevant” pastors / leaders gobble it up. All discernment thus goes out the window. For the discerner, it is both sad and frustrating.
I did reply back to my acquaintance and gently yet firmly challenged her that if they were indeed just using the Enneagram as a personality test such as the Myers-Briggs, why not then just use the Myers-Briggs? Why use something that opens up the door to other mystic / occult type practices that seekers or young-in-faith believers might choose to explore?
She never replied back.
This is yet another reminder of how Satan is the master of deceit and confusion. What better way to continue to destroy the church by “innocently” introducing things that seem otherwise “harmless”? Both leaders and lay people need to be courageous at speaking up and warning others about such practices and reject them unequivocally.
Sincerely ___________
The following is an excerpt of an article written by Mike Oppenheimer:
Enneagram claims to be an entry point for deep personal healing and renewal. Enneagram is a psychological and spiritual system for a higher consciousness. We are told it will help us understand the personality types and the differences in each other which should reduce unnecessary conflicts (transforming one into a more tolerant person). We can transform our habits by being our own observer in how we think and go from unconscious behavior to conscious behavior. This is done through a series of probing questions called a PERSONALITY PROFILE questionnaire where one learns what his or her type is.
The Enneagram symbol is a nine-pointed, star-like figure. The nine lines comprise a perfect triangle and a twisted hexagon contained within a circle. This is a New Age type mandala, a mystical gateway to personality classification. The drawing is based upon a belief in the mystical properties of the numbers 7 and 3. (source)
Excerpt from an Article by Ed Hird:
Enneagram and the Occult
Gurdjieff’s work led to the formation of the New-Age cult, Arica, founded by his disciple Oscar Ichazo. It was Ichazo and his colleague Claudio Naranjo (an instructor at the Esalen Institute) who together developed the Enneagram in the 1960s as an indicator of personality in its current form.(14) Naranjo merged the Enneagram with 9 of Freud’s 10 personality defense mechanisms….
Barbara Metz, SND, and John Burchill, OP, recommend the Enneagram as a way of engaging in “kything prayer”. Kything Prayer can be done with any other person, present or absent, dead or alive, whose Enneagramic reading ‘moves against your numerical arrows’. The key is to “let your center find itself within the person with whom you are kything” and to “Picture yourself within the [other] person.” An alternative form of Enneagramic kything is to “invite the other person’s spirit into themselves.”(19) One may very well ask how appropriate it is for Christians to be inviting the spirits of the dead into themselves. Does this not slide into occultic channeling/mediumistic practices that are clearly forbidden by Holy Scripture?(20) Is it enough for Enneagram advocates like Jim Scully of Pecos Abbey to say “that ‘occult’ and ‘satanic’ are not synonyms? God told me back in 1979 that the greatest issue facing the Church in the 1990’s would be the deception of inter-faith syncretism. Maybe it is time for us as Anglicans and Christians to truly wake up and repent of our syncretistic mixing of Christ and the occult, of good and evil, of truth and deception, of light and darkness. “Gurdjieff and the Enigmatic Enneagram” by Ed Hird, Anglican Renewal Ministries of Canada
An article from The Berean Call
Are You My Type? The Enneagram Catches on with Christians
The Enneagram came to the United States in the 1970s, where it initially caught on among Catholic seminarians and priests and became a tool for spiritual formation.
In its present form, the Enneagram includes nine personality types, or numbers, illustrated by a nine-pointed geometric figure. (The term Enneagram comes from the Greek words meaning “nine” and “drawing” or “figure.”) Each, at its worst, is tied to one of the deadly sins – plus two more traits that have been added in.
A person’s “type” is determined by self-examination; the goal being to better understand oneself – and one’s strengths, weaknesses and tendencies – and those of others.
But it may not be as modern as it sounds, or as alien to the faith as some might fear. In fact, some trace the Enneagram to a fourth-century Christian monk and ascetic named Evagrius, whose teaching later influenced the formation of the seven deadly sins, according to Cron and Stabile. Others detect elements of the Enneagram within Sufism and Judaism. (source)
It doesn’t help you better understand your proclivities. It uses conjecture and presuppositions to make the gullible feel like they’ve learned something about themselves. The International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences says this about typology: “Unfortunately, from the scientific point of view, nothing is explained if the state we have attributed to the person from his behavior, is then invoked as the cause of the behavior from which it was inferred. Circular explanations like this give the appearance of a genuine explanation that offers genuine knowledge. But it is only illusory.”
Earlier in the same paragraph they refer to typology such as the MBTI and Enneagram as “a form of fortune telling and divination.”
“The Enneagram is no serious scientific model. It belongs to the confusing and rapidly changing field of lay-psychology: it seems to be a flourishing trade. A psychologist who is a member of the Dutch Institute of Psychologists who works with the Enneagram, risks getting a complaint based on Article III.3 of the professional Code of Ethics, which is about expertise. For non-psychologists such restrictions of course do not apply. But as the Enneagram industry is making statements about our personality – which is subject to scientific research and a profession – we must call a spade a spade: it is simply nonsense.” – Wim Hofstee, Psychology Professor Emeritus. Your declaration of legalism is unfounded, experts do not recommend the Enneagram on any grounds.
Wow you opened me up to how dangerous the enneagram is and it’s occultic New Age origins this is evil and absolutely demonic. I know my Bible teacher is a true Christian and speaks the truth of the Scriptures, but I don’t think she realized that this stuff was occultic and something involved in the New Age well now I know and I will tell her as well as I have completely deleted the app from my and will not be putting it back on my phone and I am also deleting my account.
Thank you Lighthouse Trails for this information. I recently saw a mom’s type website founder who posted all about the Enneagram and how great and wonderful it was. I posted a comment about how it was unbiblical and posted the link to this article. Sadly she chose not to publish my comment. Makes me sad.
I am in the same kind of situation as I have watched our church descend into blatant false teaching. It is so heartbreaking.
I went to my pastor in 2010 for guidance about some very difficult issues in my life, and he directed me to a counselor who recommended the Enneagram and other Pseudo Psychology books. Our church had been descending into into all kinds of strange teachings before we left– after 30 years! Our present pastor is also being led down some deceptive paths. I did have to speak to him about Mark Batterson’s The Circle Maker. When I sent him some links about its weaknesses, he told me those who refute it have limited views. In seven years, there have been three pastors! I feel saddened that worship has become clouded by the need for discernment. My discernment continues to be aided by online resources like the Blue Letter Bible Institute online Bible courses and daily devotionals, Got Questions, etc. I am thankful that God has provided these resources and given me a mind to understand. He has opened my eyes to the truth in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. Glory be to Him now and forever! God Bless your ministry.
I Timothy 4:1 refers to people who will stray from God’s truth and be deceived by “doctrines of demons”.
“Now the Spirit [a]expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons.” If you do a thorough honest research on the origins of the Enneagram, it was developed by people drenched in the occult. Even as it was developed from a mystical pagan numerology tool, into today’s so called friendly helpful personality tool, it was STILL developed by people who were occult-driven. So, my reply to people who are saying, what’s the big deal, why are you so afraid of this…… Please pay heed to 1 Timothy 4, do you REALLY. want to embrace and defend DOCTRINES OF DEMONS? Do you? Is not God’s Word sufficient? The denomination I am in right now, Evangelical Covenant, is going headlong crazy giddy into promoting the Enneagram and I am heartbroken over it. It is leading many astray.. In the flock of God, the Flock He gave His son’s precious blood for, so many shepherds are paying heed to these doctrines of demons embedded in the Enneagram. If you read the pro-enneagram materials, it is so easy to hear the pagan occult self-absorbed narcissistic demonic philosophy laced throughout. I just don’t understand how our leaders and shepherds don’t recognize doctrines of demons. Please please please, be aware of the roots of this and stay with God’s Word as sufficient. There are also ample warnings in Colossians about not falling camptive to empty worldly philosophies. Can our leaders and shepherds not see this? Please wake up, Church.
Yet another trojan horse in the Body of Christ today. Sad and tragic. The fruit will be nothing but destructive.
I’m confused, is everyone saying it is bad just because some people use it in occultish practices? I think I’m missing exactly what makes talking about how different people think a work of Satan. Is there any reason in the enneagram itself, or is it just guilty by association?
Hello,
You may also be interested in some of the work done by Martin & Deidre Bobgan at the PsychoHeresy Awareness Ministries (PAM). The two items on the PAM website that relate to the Enneagram are:
1) Four Temperaments Astrology & Personality Testing: http://www.psychoheresy-aware.org/e-books/4temp-ebk.pdf
2) The Enneagram via Christianity Today: http://www.psychoheresy-aware.org/enneagram.html
Glenn
The “journey of the soul”? That’s New Age talk, Marilyn. And I know nothing and care nothing about Trump. How did you get to him in your comment?
And the sins reference? Listen, our sins are not ‘covered’ as many believe because some major man-made cult tells them that. Jesus took away the sins; gone, no more, and no more condemnation for the person in Christ (pardon me for repeating this bit again; I’ve said it before too).
The Enneagram is a New Age novelty, as simple as that. File it under “over it,” move on and tell lost souls that there is only one hope for them, Jesus Christ: Not the church, not charity, not sitting in a weekly Sunday club, not being a church member, not volunteering all over the place, not “biblical” counseling, not Mary, not Paul, not tithing, not “spiritual leaders”, not Oprah and her gangs, not “oneness,” not baptism, not communion . . . but calling on the name of Jesus Christ ONCE and accepting his gift ONCE. Then the Holy Spirit WILL fill you ONCE as God promised. And this spirit will not “grow.” Our understanding of God will grow and we will know the truth, once and for all.\
I was saved in 2000; I don’t need to be saved again, ever again. It’s done; now, if that’s not something to feel good about on this nonsense day of happiness (another useless worldly tradition), then nothing is worth anything.
So, please, move over the Enneagram; it’s a novelty . . . like a one-colored Rubik’s cube (yes, I have difficulty completing even those). Smiles.
Blessings, Marilyn
What is everyone so afraid of? Why are you so unwilling to better understand your proclivity toward specific sins? A lot of legalistic, self righteous, fearful thinking that stifles the journey of the soul. Aren’t you the same people that defend the current US President, Trump? Jesus has said that He doesn’t know you and to go away from Him.
No, in the life of the born-again Christian it has no place. It’s foreign; it’s New Age. Move on and spread the Gospel that saves through the one-time death of Jesus Christ.
The Enneagram sounds like the daily Zodiac readings. Part of the occult and fortune tellers. We should not participate in these things as believers. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob forbids it over and over again in the Bible.
So many people, lay and leaders, talk about being knowledgeable about themselves and others, yet they do not seek discernment from Christ. So in turn, they are ignorant and susceptible to every new wave of doctrine/teaching/book that comes their way.
Jesus has become a convenient way to avoid Hell, but God will not be mocked. The Bible is a feel good book (when needed) but bothersome when the reader is feeling convicted…again, God will not be mocked.
God, Christ Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are Holy…but many do not really understand the meaning. I think they believe it means better than us; and that’s it.
A true believing Christian and the life they should lead is slowly becoming lost. They depend on other books (other than the Bible), unfamiliar people (other than their pastor or trusted believers), other ways that seem right to them (other than Christ alone) to achieve a true relationship with God and right living.
Is it that hard to pray, read God’s word, and trust Him?
No…but the straight and narrow is apparently unwanted.
It really baffles me that when someone brings something to another Christian’s attention they are so quick to respond rather than praying about it, searching Scripture and trying to see the other perspective as possibly being right. Instead the need for the young pastor’s wife to be “right” was greater than her need to do what was right.
On Instagram, I follow a younger (than I) woman who works in a women’s ministry known all over the country. She had a necklace that was her Ennegram and she was proud of it and discussed it openly. I wrote her a private message and said that Ennegrams are not Scriptural and because she has a significant influence on a great number of women who follow her, she needed to read about (article attached to my note) this and be aware. She thanked me and said she’d take a look at it and in months she was not only wearing the necklace but talking up Ennegrams too.